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A former Columbus police officer was sentenced to seven years in prison today for luring two
Centennial High School students into sexual relationships.

Todd L. Smith, 50, had pleaded guilty in January to coercing and enticing two 15-year-old
girls when he worked as a resource officer at the Columbus school last year.

Sentencing guidelines call for 14 to 17 1/2 years in prison, but prosecutors asked U.S.
District Judge Algenon L. Marbley for a lesser sentence because Smith cooperated in FBI
investigations.

Marbley also sentenced Smith to one year of house arrest after the prison term and five years
of supervised release after that, and fined him $20,000.

FBI Special Agent Latisha Hartsough testified that Smith, a police officer for 26 years,
communicated with the girls through text messages and Facebook. He told the girls he had a sex
addiction they needed to help him with.

One of the girls notified the FBI. An agent then posed as the girl and had a text
conversation with Smith that included setting up a 2 a.m. liaison for sex in a gas-station parking
lot. Smith showed up, but the undercover agent texted him that she “got caught” and couldn’t sneak
out of the house.

Smith, of Bretton Place north of Westerville in Delaware County, was arrested the next day.
The second girl contacted the FBI the day after that.

One of the girls told FBI agents that Smith tried to have sex with her in his office while
wearing his uniform and gun belt during a school play that was going on in the auditorium. The girl
performed oral sex on him when he was unable to perform.

Smith also coerced the two girls into sending him at least one photo each of herself topless.
FBI agents said Smith and one of the girls exchanged more than 6,000 texts.